


The first morning, and the one that might have been

by redsnake05



Category: Devil's Cub - Georgette Heyer, HEYER Georgette - Works
Genre: F/M, Rape/Non-con References, Sexual Content
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-12-25
Updated: 2010-12-25
Packaged: 2017-10-14 02:19:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 513
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/144275
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/redsnake05/pseuds/redsnake05
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Mary touches the scar that she gave Dominic and thinks about how fortunate it is that he keeps his pistols loaded.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The first morning, and the one that might have been

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Jay Tryfanstone (tryfanstone)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/tryfanstone/gifts).



Mary woke up early, just as the first shreds of light filtered through the curtains. She wasn't sure she'd slept much last night anyway, between the unfamiliar weight of Dominic's arm over her side and the accumulated worries of the past few weeks. She sat up, careful not to disturb Dominic. He shifted in his sleep, face half crushed into the pillow. He looked different asleep, even more vulnerable than he'd looked when injured and feverish. He looked young, carefree. Mary pulled the blankets a little tighter around herself and ignored the various aches of her body. She felt her face heat, even alone in their bedchamber, but she pushed aside any thought of shame. Instead, she trailed her fingers slowly over Dominic's arm.

The scar on his bicep was red. Just a few inches across and ragged around the edges, she could remember how the wound had bled onto the carpet of that parlour in Dieppe. She didn't like to think of that moment; the recoil of the gun and the smell of powder in the air, the way Dominic had staggered backwards. She'd been terrified that the gun wouldn't fire, more terrified that she would kill him. Coldest of all was the fear that she wouldn't be able to stop him. She shivered.

"Mary?" mumbled Dominic. "Not morning yet." He shifted, rolling onto his side more and propping himself up on his elbow. The sheets slid down and Mary couldn't stop herself from looking at his chest, his flat belly.

"I was just thinking," she said.

"Oh?" he asked. He looked adorable. She knew she wasn't supposed to think that, but as he pushed his hair back off his face and blinked at her she was fiercely glad that she'd shot him, that she'd stopped him, that she could look at him like this and not be ashamed of it.

"Thinking about shooting you," she said, finally, when he continued to look at her questioningly.

"I'm glad you shot me," he said. Mary laughed softly and he grinned, still sleepy and unfocused, but it was enough to make her catch her breath. She touched his scar again, fingers soft on the shiny new skin. He caught her hand and brought it to his lips, kissing the palm, mouthing over her wrist, pulling her closer to press more kisses up the inside of her arm to linger in the crook of her elbow.

"I'm glad you keep your pistols loaded," she said. Dominic laughed this time, shifting to pull her closer.

"You would have hit me over the head with the butt, if shooting me hadn't worked," he said. "I'm certain of it."

Mary wanted to ask him what would have happened, if she hadn't shot him. She knew that they wouldn't have ended up here, not like this. Dominic tilted his head and caught her chin in his hand, tipping her face up for a kiss. She didn't really want to know. Gripping his arm, she opened to his kiss, letting her worries go like the the last of the night.


End file.
